Latest MIT Stories

A landmark DNA study in Iceland has resulted in an unprecedented look at an entire country’s genetic makeup, discovering several previously unknown mutations that could cause a vast array of different health problems, but regulations prevent some of that data from being used.

Say you’re out shopping for basic household goods — perhaps orange juice and soup. Or light bulbs. Or diapers for your young child. How do you choose the products you buy? Is it a complicated decision, or a simple one?

There are only five bodies in our solar system that are known to bear rings. The most obvious is the planet Saturn; to a lesser extent, rings of gas and dust also encircle Jupiter, Uranus, and Neptune. The fifth member of this haloed group is Chariklo, one of a class of minor planets called centaurs: small, rocky bodies that possess qualities of both asteroids and comets.